Manny Wolfe had a rather unconventional start to life. His story starts out with being born into a cult in the late 60’s in the San Francisco Bay area, where he was programmed from birth not to fit into outside society. At 8 ½ years old, the cult moved from right into the middle of one of the top 10 most violent ghettos at the time, Stockton, CA. Overnight, he experienced violence and spent the next 4 years in a constant state of flight-or-fight mode and the children in the cult received no protection or guidance from the adults. Between the countercultural mindset instilled in him, 4 years of violence, and an environment where drug use was encouraged, by the time he was 12 and they moved away, he was set on a path of drug abuse, addiction, criminal behavior, jails and violence.
It took years for him to even realize that his youth was not normal and, finally, he had a moment of clarity at 28 years old that sent him running. He disappeared from the life and the crowd that he was in, never to be heard from again. That decision marked the exact moment when his trajectory started to change. From that time forward, he began to pursue self-exploration, personal development, and studied what internal mechanisms had led him to that point.
He looked to thought leaders and as he started absorbing their teachings and undoing his own damage bit by bit, the person that emerged was someone who was tender, vulnerable and wanted to be of service to others. It would be many years still until he put their thoughts and his calling together. During the intervening years he did everything from construction to being a playwright, until one day his fiancé told him he should write a book about his experiences.
After the book was done, the question became, “how do I get a platform to sell it?” A podcast was the obvious answer. From there, the possibilities just opened up a whole new life for Manny and today, he is a Public Speaking and Charisma Coach. If you need to deliver from the stage in a way that is dazzling, Manny will show you how to get there by using your body language and speech as your secret weapons.
Most Influential Mentor:
- Thought leaders and motivators including Tony Robbins and Michael Gerber were huge influences on him and showed him how he could be of service to others in a way that used his gifts of being attuned to others and great communication skills.
Biggest Challenges and Lessons:
- Manny’s entire youth and young adulthood were a series of challenges. His darkest moment came at 28, when he had seriously contemplated killing another man. Fortunately, it dawned on him at that moment that he couldn’t follow through and that decision ultimately led him on a journey to not only saving his life but becoming a success.
- During the recession, he lost everything-his home, his car and his utilities-when construction bottomed out. That led him to go to his family for support, something most people would do.
- Although the reaction and lack of support he received from them was pretty awful, in the long run it was the best thing that could have happened. For years, he had never made the connection that they were actually the barrier to his success and it took this one meeting for him to see in one glorious, painful, cathartic moment that all his need for their approval was severed.
- From that point forward, he knew that he should not, could not and didn’t need to rely on them, and after his breakaway from their limiting beliefs and betrayal, abundance showed itself again in his life.
Discovery:
- From launching his podcast to today, he made so many wonderful friends and his eyes were opened to many wonderful opportunities.
- He’d had no idea of what existed online and when he discovered it, it was like someone gave him the key to the secret door to the reach and impact we can have.
- He had an incredible ‘A-ha!’ moment that the things he loved to do in the realm of helping others could also support him. Through the power of the internet, he’s now coached people on 7 continents!
The Importance of Communication:
- As humans, we connect to others with voice in a way that is more profound than any other form of communication. Our voices identify us.
- If we can put different cadence, tone and rhythm into our speaking voices, it broadens the spectrum of emotional access that people have to us.
- Being able to put emotional cues into our speaking makes people’s perception of you change-you are perceived as more charismatic, more open, and more trustworthy. You will never hear a great orator who doesn’t have great flexibility in rhythm, tone and cadence.
Advice on Being ‘All-In’:
- If you want to make a true ‘go’ of your entrepreneurial dream, you have to stop serving two masters. That only feeds into the scarcity mindset.
- There is nothing that compares to being able to labor diligently in a way that connects to your mission.
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